Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
So...on to Gill T, which while being only a short boat ride from Gilli Meno is a whole world apart. Filled with bars and restaurants, also a rotating party night throughout the island, it certainly lived up to its reputation of a party island.
Here we met up with Ali's friends from school, Fiona and her friend Ciara, along with her brother and a whole host of Irish. Everyone was at different stages of travels, some on there way home to Ireland and others, like us, just beginning. We had great fun swapping stories and catching up, whilst also sampling the famous nightlife, including the infamous Tir na nOg Irish bar for one of the Islands party nights!
The main reason for our stay on the island was for its tropical waters to learn to dive.
The first of our 3 day course was learning to use the equipment in a swimming pool, and certainly breathing had never been more difficult! However after a difficult day for myself trying to overcome some fairly intensive claustrophobia, we were off in a boat armed with our newly learnt hand signals and mask skills, for our first open water dive.
Any feeling of apprehension about being 18m underwater didn't even get time to get processed, as within moments of being underwater, all you can see is multicoloured coral and sholes of equally bright fish in all different shapes and sizes!
Over the next 4 dives we were lucky enough to see so much marine life, highlights would definitely be both hawksbill turtles and black tipped sharks.
Next Fiona, Ciara Ali and I headed off on another boat to Lombok, where instead of tackling the infamously challenging volcano Rinjani, we opted for some chilled beach time and exploring the local town of Kuta. We also set off across the island in search of the famous pink beach, which perhaps through squinted eyes in the right light was maybe pink tinged at best, but did offer some spectacular scenery and lovely swimming.
Our next planned stop was the island of Flores. This involved either two flights via Bali or a 4 day boat trip on a traditional fisherman boat, where you eat and sleep on the deck along with many other backpackers. We had always planned to get the boat across, however in the days leading up it when we would have needed to leave we heard many reports of very rough waters and some boats getting stranded. However, in typical Indonesian style, many of the fisherman were promising that the waters were nothing but calm. At the risk of spending 4 days with our head over the deck and knowing that the safety standards in Indonesia often leave a lot to be desired, we opted to fly. With hindsight this proved a very lucky decision, as while traveling we heard reports of one of the boat sinking and many missing tourists. Although many of them had managed to swim to safety to a local island where they had survived for 24 hours with no food or water before being rescued, I am glad that is an adventure that we missed out on.
So with our feet firmly on dry land, why not get them wet again?! Possibly our favourite island in Indonesia, Flores was base for our boat trip to Rinca and Komodo, to see the rather mythical Komodo dragons. Reaching up to 3m in length and weighing 100kg, they lay basking in the morning sun as we hiked around them through the savannah. It was amazing to be so close and watch them do little more than sunbath, in the knowledge of there deadly hunting capabilities.
We also spent time snorkelling and diving in what can only really be described as a tropical aquarium seeing even more than previously, including lion fish, cuttlefish fish, even more turtles, clown fish, snapper, black tip sharks and sting rays.
Paradise came to a rather abrupt end the following day as we embarked on our first trip on the mis-guidingly named trans Flores highway. Although booked onto a tourist bus, what we learnt was that simply meant that as a tourist you got a seat, and that literally every nook and cranny of the rest of the bus was filled with either local people, and in this case approx 20 sacks of onions. 12 eye watering hours later we arrived in the hilltop town of Bajawa, where we explored the traditional villages of the Ngada people and marvelled at many a red mouth of the village elders who were all chewing tobacco, with what few teeth that remained.
It was also Indonesia's Independence Day, so throughout the day we came across church goers and youngsters marching through the streets to celebrate an end to colonial rule.
Back on the 'highway' and sat on sacs of rice, we were off to the fisherman town of Riung. We rewarded our numb bums with a boat trip around the stunning white sandy beaches and turquoise waters of the 17 Islands Marine Park, which is actually made up of 21 uninhabited Islands, but named after the Independence Day on the 17th August.
Next stop was the town of Moni at the base of volcanic national park of Kelimutu. A pre dawn hike was rewarded as we watched sunrise, sipping ginger coffee looking over the stunning tri-coloured volcanic lakes. Appearing as thick as paint due to the dissolving mineral content,the turquoise, red and black lakes are sacred to the local people who believe that the dead migrate here, and certainly the beauty of the lakes combined with the moonlike volcanic landscape, it can easily be believed.
Last stop in Flores, was the port of Maumere, where we said goodbye to Ciara and Fiona, and embarked on probably my favourite mode of transport so far....the Pelni ferry.
Leaving every 2 weeks, the Pelni ferry is more of a cargo ship that now transports people,than a ferry. Two of only three westerners aboard, along with a few thousand Indonesians, we spent 22hours sleeping on the deck on old rice sacks, eating rice and fish, and making friends with the locals. Although sleeping was a little difficult, the experience was amazing as we both felt like celebrities with people coming especially to talk/stare at us, and even arguing over getting to watch me brushing my hair and moisturising my face in the girls bathroom.
We arrived, perhaps slightly bewildered, to our final stop in Indonesia, the island of Sulawesi, and namely the region on Tana Toraja.
The region is famous for its agriculture, villages are dotted between rice paddies and buffaloes are on every road bend. However it's culture and traditions are as rich as it's fertile land, with elaborate carved wooden houses and stone graves visible throughout the landscape.
Life here revolves around death, as the local people spend their entire lives saving for their families funerals. Families will travel back to the region from all over Indonesia, and in fact the world, to attend funerals. They take place over 3 days and will see hundreds of torajan people in traditional dress congregate in celebration of the deceased, who may have died years before, and the family have been saving for an elaborate funeral.
Buffalo and pigs are brought by the guests, the numbers depend on the class of the deceased, and many are slaughtered infront of the large crowd, which for one funeral included us.
We were lucky enough to be able to witness a high class funeral of an elderly gentleman who had died two years previously. To attend, we took gifts of sugar, sweets and cigarettes. We sat in the village square and sipped tea, while listening to the blaring tannoy system as literally hundreds of pigs were presented to the family, along with douzens of prize buffalo. The atmosphere was far from somber, with traditional dance and plenty of food and drink flowing. The family will then choose which animals they wish to sacrifice, and the crowds will watch as in the case of this funeral, countless pigs and 10 buffalo are slaughtered. It makes for incredibly gruesome viewing, and while ethically I found it challenging to watch, culturally, it was an unparalleled experience, and a truly fascinating way to end our time on Indonesia.
So after almost two months, having trekked through jungle, marvelled at Orangatangs, spent countless hours on many a memorable bus, hiked up volcanoes, wandered around numerous temples, lazed on perfect beaches, explored the tropical waters and watched countless beautiful sunsets, we said goodbye to Indonesia. However with so much more still left to explore, I have no doubt that we will be back in the future.
- comments